Wings of Fire: The Hidden Key

~Chapter Twelve~

Reed glanced around at her surroundings. They weren't exactly out of their prison yet, it seemed. They were in a dark, cramped tunnel, with dirty floors and cracked walls. "Where does this go?" She said, nervously examining the walls.

 "I think... it leads to the middle of nowhere." Amber said helpfully, scratching at the dirt with her claws.

 "No. It leads to somewhere around the Sky Kingdom, I think." Dreamcatcher said, sounding a little annoyed.

 Reed stared at her, wondering how they had gone that far. "B-but I was kidnapped from the Kingdom of the Sea! How did we get here so fast-?"

 "Animus-touched tunnels. I think this is one of them. Eel's facility is between the Mud Kingdom and the Sky Kingdom, so they must have had an entrance where you lived."

 She fell silent, contemplating where the tunnel might've been. Had she walked over it without even knowing? She shuddered and shoved the thought away from her mind.

 "Alright then!" Starberry said cheerfully and began poking around the tunnel. "There should be an exit somewhere around here. I hope we don't pop up in the middle of the Sky Kingdom, 'cause that would be embarrassing. Queen Firework probably wouldn't like that."

 Amber snorted. "You can say that again. With our luck, we'd end up in the dungeons."

 Dreamcatcher began digging through the dirt and let out a tiny gasp. "I found something!" She exclaimed, pointing at a rusted piece of metal half-buried in the mud.

 They all stared at it. "Uh... is that thing even going to work?" Starberry pointed at its dark brown joints, snickering slightly.

 "Yes," Dreamcatcher said indignantly. "Just watch. I've done my research." She learned down and began tugging on the lever, but it didn't move no matter how hard she pulled.

 Amber and Starberry looked at each other and burst into laughter. "So, leave it to the strong ones?" Amber smirked.

 "Skinny arms!" Starberry sang, her eyes glittering with amusement.

 Dreamcatcher scowled and slunk over to Reed and sat down next to her. "Those idiots are making me lose my brain cells." She muttered, glaring at the other two.

 Amber wrapped her talons around the lever and heaved it backwards. A loud click echoed through the tunnel, and then a rumbling noise. Starberry yelped and jumped backwards when a piece of rock hit her on the nose. "Ow! Stupid rock!" She glared at the ceiling, rubbing her snout. Her scales flared with irritated orange, stepping backwards.

Dreamcatcher shot to her feet; eyes wide. "This isn't good..."

 "What's not good? That I'm stronger than you, mopey-moon?" Amber sniggered, poking Dreamcatcher in the wing. The NightWing shoved her away, her nostrils flaring.

 "I'm being serious! That lever probably hasn't been used for a really long time. I'm guessing the entire tunnel becomes unstable when it's pulled, because no one's been here to keep it working."

 Amber stopped smirking, glancing nervously around her. "...oh. Camel spit."

 "We need to get out of here, now." The NightWing frantically began digging in the dirt even harder, yelling for them to do something.

 Reed leaped over to her, and tried to help, although she wasn't very strong herself. Amber shoved them aside, burrowing through the mud with super-sonic speed and a determined look. "I don't see an exit! What did that stupid lever even do?" She shouted, hurling a piece of rock at the wall in her frustration.

 It hit the wall with a thunk, and the whole wall began to crumble, pouring dirt into their small space. "WHAT IN THE NAME OF CLEARSIGHT DID YOU DO?" Dreamcatcher snarled, backing up from the growing pile of earth.